Fly Away by Kristin Hannah
Series: Firefly Lane, #2
Read by Susan Ericksen
Macmillan Audio
2013
Length: 16 hours
Source: Personal copy
Once, a long time
ago, I walked down a night-darkened road called Firefly Lane, all alone,
on the worst night of my life, and I found a kindred spirit. That was
our beginning. More than thirty years ago. TullyandKate. You and me
against the world. Best friends forever. But stories end, don’t they?
You lose the people you love and you have to find a way to go on. . . .Tully
Hart thinks she can overcome anything until her best friend, Kate Ryan, dies. Tully tries to fulfill
her deathbed promise to Kate–to be there for Kate’s children–but Tully
knows nothing about family or motherhood or taking care of people. Sixteen-year-old
Marah Ryan is devastated by her mother’s death. Nothing and no one seems to
matter to her . . . until she falls in love with a young man who makes
her smile again and leads her into his dangerous, shadowy world. Dorothy
Hart is at the center of
Tully’s tragic past. She repeatedly abandoned her daughter, Tully, as a
child, but now she comes back, drawn to her daughter’s side at a time
when Tully is most alone. At long last, Dorothy must face her darkest
fear: Only by revealing the ugly secrets of her past can she hope to
become the mother her daughter needs.An emotionally complex, heart-wrenching novel about love, motherhood, loss, and new beginnings, Fly Away reveals why Kristin Hannah is one of the most beloved writers of our day.
My thoughts: Kristin Hannah is one of my favorite authors and I was thrilled to hear that she was writing a sequel to Firefly Lane, one of my favorite books! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on this sequel and was lucky to win a copy of the audio version.
The majority of this story is told in flashbacks – alternating amongst the main characters – but it is mostly Tully’s story. We find out how Tully, Johnny and Marah have been dealing with the death of Kate – the rock that held the group together. Picking up where Firefly Lane left off, we see that each of the characters are struggling with Kate’s death. Tully seems to be at rock bottom and ends up in a major car accident – thus pulling everyone, including Tully’s estranged mother, Dorothy, together.
I loved hearing Dorothy’s story – why she is the way she is. She sits at Tully’s bedside and finally tells her story. We find out why Dorothy, or Cloud as she was known, left Tully with her grandparents and how now she has managed to turn her life around. Even the conversations between Dorothy and Kate’s mom show just how much she’s changed.
While this story is a tear-jerker, it’s also a heartwarming story about hope and forgiveness. While I enjoyed this book, I will say that I liked the first one more. Have you found that a sequel doesn’t quite live up to the expectations after an amazing first book?
Audio thoughts: I love listening to Susan Ericksen and thought she did a great job in reading this story. With emotions running high throughout the book, she was able to use just the right level as the situation called for.
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Books in this series:
- Firefly Lane
- Fly Away
I will have to check this series out. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
I haven't read Firefly Lane yet. I try not to start too many series because it's hard to keep up. It seems so many books today are trilogies or series.
I loved this one, too; it has been awhile since I read Firefly Lane, but this one felt like a story that answered questions for me. Thanks for sharing.